1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a dispensing device, and more particularly a device for dispensing a pre-measured amount of a liquid or powdered material from inside a container.
2. Description of the Related Art
Numerous devices are known for dispensing a measured amount of a liquid or powdered material from inside a container. Most such devices comprise an elongated tube having a flared, funnel-shaped extension at its lower end. The funnel-shaped extension forms the lower reservoir which is used to capture a pre-measured amount of powder from inside the container. An example of such a device is described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,323,938 to Ceccarelli et al.
In order to install such a device in a container, it is necessary to insert the tube and the funnel-shaped extension through the mouth of the container. However, due to the size of the funnel, the usefulness of such devices is necessarily limited to containers having relatively wide mouth openings.
Therefore, there is a need for pre-measured material dispensers which are capable of being installed in a wide variety of containers, including those having relatively narrow mouth openings.